8 RPGs released in 1997 not receiving remakes in 2020
Final Fantasy VII Remake, one of the most anticipated releases of 2020, is the culmination of decades of love and adoration for a game that released in 1997. The original title influenced both its own genre and the entire video game industry in a multitude of ways. Parallel to that intense adoration, many Final Fantasty fans have begged for a remake for longer than some gamers have been alive.
Additionally, hype over said begged-for remake ballooned in 2015 when Square Enix announced they would indeed be remaking the beloved title. Now, five years later, fans and newcomers alike will finally experience this thorough remake of Gaia — well, at least a small corner of it.
Historical Context
Living in 2020, though, it might be hard to remember or realize (because you were not old enough or had not been born yet in 1997) how big of a deal FFVII was for the then-named Square Soft and for video games as a whole. Releasing in Japan at the end of January 1997, the game sold at shocking levels, moving more than two million units in the span of a few days.
In North America nine months later, a region not known for flocking to RPGs of its ilk, FFVII sold more than 300 thousand units in its first weekend. “The RPG genre had been all but ignored in the states; VII built up a massive RPG fanbase in America overnight, almost single-handed,” writes Rus McLaughlin in his 2012 “The History of Final Fantasty VII” for IGN. As a result, many of us have loved this game for a long time, and we’re excited to play its beautiful-looking remake.
The Point
But here’s what I’ve been thinking: games other than FFVII released in 1997, but gamers will not be playing newly-released remakes of those games in 2020. Let’s look at eight of those games, shall we?
Quick note: I will be using the original Japanese release dates for these games. A portion of these titles released in the West at a later date.
1. Atelier Marie: The Alchemist of Salburg
The first game on our list boasts a title that is long and lore-dependent enough to make even a Kingdom Hearts game weep with jealousy. This entry is the first of the popular Atelier brand, which now touts 20 main series games. You read correctly: 20 main series titles since 1997.
Atelier Marie released initially on the original PlayStation in May 1997, and then it released later in December 1997 on the Sega Saturn. If you want to play it in 2020 but don't read Japanese, you unfortunately don't have an official way of experiencing it as it's never been officially translated for western audiences. And it won't be brought to the West in a FF7 Remake-style manner in 2020.
2. Breath of Fire III
Our next game released in September 1997. This game is interesting from the standpoint that, much like Final Fantasy VII, the Breath of Fire series used it to make the leap from SNES to PlayStation. Additionally, BFIII featured the first foray into 3D graphics for the series. Where things get interesting when comparing this title to FFVII is that the two games took opposing directions to the 3D implementation. Whereas Square opted for 3D sprites set against 2D pre-rendered backgrounds, Breath of Fire III utilized 3D backgrounds framing 2D sprites.
If you'd like to experience this game in 2020, you will have to refer to a used-game bin or your favorite online used-game storefront. There is a version in English for the PlayStation Portable.
3. Final Fantasy Tactics
If you are not old enough to properly remember games releasing in the mid-90s, you likely don't remember a Final Fantasy game not created by Square Enix. If that is the case, it's likely that you think Square Enix is required to release a single Final Fantasy title only when the astral bodies fall into perfect alignment. However, there was a time in the company’s history when the Final Fantasy tap flowed with overabundant generosity, and Square was not afraid to slap the branding of Final Fantasy on different types of games.
1997 was one of those years. That's right, Final Fantasy VII wasn't the only Final Fantasy game to release that year. In June, Square graced fans with Final Fantasy's very own tactical RPG. This title, while not the cultural event of its mainline big brother, has been a fan favorite for years. Its Metacritic score is a solid 83 with a user score of a whopping 9.2. Compare that to Final Fantasy VII’s user score of a 9.1, and you see that fans of the Final Fantasy series like FF Tactics even more than the mainstream poster child being remade in 2020.
(If you’re red hot in the face with rage after reading that, just know I don’t consider that accurate scientific measuring nor do I think its an actual reflection of fans’ true feelings; instead, the off-based comparison was used for comedic effect etc etc etc.) (Editor’s note from 2022: please note that this piece was written in 2020, and user scores for both games have changed since that time. As of 2022, FFT’s user score is 9.1, and FF7’s user score is 8.9, so my joke still slaps.)
Gamers can play Final Fantasy Tactics on a variety of platforms including mobile phones. Its 2007 PSP updated version keeps the game looking decent on modern hardware.
4. Front Mission 2
It’s time to finally put away the sword and sorcery talk and pull out mech suits. Front Mission 2, releasing in September 1997, was another Square Soft title published in the same year as Final Fantasy VII. It also marked the transition of the series moving from Super Famicom to PlayStation, and it also saw 3D design in both its characters and environments. Despite the game’s popularity in Japan, it has never received an official translation and port into the West.
5. Grandia
Grandia marks a couple firsts for our list. It is the first game featured in this piece released (at the buzzer in December 1997) for the Sega Saturn. It is also the first of these games that has had at least a recent remaster, making it actually playable in English and with easy accessability. In 2019, remasters for both Grandia 1 and Grandia 2 released on Windows and Nintendo Switch. So while you won’t be able to play a 2020-released remake of this game in 2020, you can play a recently touched-up remaster of this game in 2020.
6. SaGa Frontier
Have you not had enough Square RPGs on this list yet? In July 1997, SaGa Frontier became the seventh release in the SaGa franchise. While many of the games we’ve covered have been the first or second titles in their series, Frontier was iterating on a long-established formula. The SaGa games, from the beginning, were known for being different, offering big casts of playable characters each with their own storyline to play. Frontier offers seven playable characters, and offered it to PlayStation in 1997 for the first time. If you want to play an updated version of SaGa Frontier in 2020, you can do so by playing Square Enix’s Octopath Traveler on the Nintendo Switch. (I jest, just in case I actually made someone think Octopath Traveler is a remake of SaGa Frontier, which it is not.)
7. Shining Force III
Shining Force III is a game from a long-running series that precedes a recently remastered PlayStation 2 game known as Shining Resonance. Shining Resonance Refrain is a game that I reviewed for a video game website. It is one of the few games I have ever reviewed for any publication. As a side note, I don’t enjoy reviewing video games.
Shining Resonance Refrain, the distant third cousin of Shining Force III, is a game that I reviewed, enjoyed, and therefore gave a positive review. The multiple dozens of people reading my review all agreed — that I was wrong. Apparently, people not named Mars Phillip did not enjoy Shining Resonance Refrain, and they did not enjoy it with much more enthusiasm than I enjoyed it. I, apparently, have no taste. And that’s my rundown of Shining Force III.
8. Tales of Destiny
Last, but certainly not least, Tales of Destiny truly rounded out the year of 1997 in video games by releasing on December 23rd. Destiny is the second installment in what is now the long-running Tales franchise. Like many other games on this list, it transitioned its series onto the PlayStation.
Tales of Destiny, like the Tales series at large, stands as a wonderful contrast to the beloved Final Fantasy VII. It differs from all other games on this list by being an action RPG. Players control the party leader as rudimentary A.I. behavior controls your other party members on the battlefield. Battles take place on a 2D plane, offering a different type of experience from other games on the market at the time. If you would like to experience Tales of Destiny in all of its original PlayStation glory, good luck because the first few games of this franchise have not had a good time with ports or localizations.
Final Thoughts
These eight games show just how enduring Final Fantasy VII has been through the years. So many of these games have been ported to other systems, a couple have been enhanced, but many of them have not stayed in mainstream for many years. All the while, Final Fantasy VII has been beloved by many, and it’s going to continue to be at the center of many a gamer’s heart for years to come, thanks to Final Fantasy VII Remake.