The Legend of Legacy HD Remastered Review
Release date: March 22, 2024
Developer: FuRyu
Genres: Role-playing video game, Adventure game, Strategy video game, Adventure
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows
Publisher: NIS America
“Review Copy Provided By NIS America”
I originally reviewed this game on my original (now none -existant) website before I became a content creator officially. This was a game that I gravitated towards due to the fact that it reminded me of one of my gaming loves being the SaGa series from Square-Enix as it had a gameplay loop and mechanic similar to that series. Some years back, FuRyu brought The Alliance Alive HD Remastered to the Switch, a fine high-definition version of a well-regarded RPG that looked all the more unlikely ever to get its full due as most of the gamers' mindshare had moved over to the Switch by then. Before that, The Legend of Legacy was FuRyu's 3DS debut and had mixed feedback when it first premiered in 2015. The Alliance Alive may be a more successful sequel, but The Legend of Legacy Remaster suggests that maybe it was deserving of a second look. But it is certainly not a standout successor. FuRyu has commendably made some adjustments to this underrated 3DS dungeon-crawler. It might not be the pinnacle of its genre, but there's enough here to engage aficionados.
The game’s narrative is minimal, which might be disappointing for some. Seven different characters travel to the mysterious island of Avalon, home to an old treasure, on a supposed adventure.
Players progress through the dungeons, uncovering relics that piece together the story of a once-flourishing civilization, its downfall, and how each character fits into these events.
While the framing of the story is tenuous, other games in the Etrian Odyssey series have managed to weave an engaging tale around custom teams. However, the Legend of Legacy really gets an interesting way to tell its story with those fragments of lore—the way Chozo lore added so much to the Metroid Prime series.
However, these are the characters that could be, by a lot of measures, instigators in so many other RPGs, and their relationships and connections to the story of Avalon feel shallow. Part of it really could have done with more depth, but it doesn't scream out in a way that distracts from enjoying the game. If somebody played any game from the Etrian Odyssey series, he or she knows what to expect from this element: gameplay returns to the traditional dungeon-crawling style, with a single town acting as a base for the player's supplies and upgrades in between expeditions to the dungeon.
Each dungeon is themed, with a fixed layout, prodding the player to map every level for sale in town. That is the simple, rewarding gameplay loop with continually new challenges—whether upgrading the gear or taking on dungeons with an improved team.
The combat is turn-based and applied through an active formation system that offers a lot of tactical depth. This enables the temporary buffs to the characters, who are placed in the three rows and indeed the formation changes during battles. It's not every fight that forces players into more in-depth engagement with this system, but it adds depth to those more challenging battles.
Another influential element is the elemental system that brings about influences in battle strategies, aspects with the prevalent element influencing advantages related to combat. There are, in essence, pre-arranged teams to leverage the most common elements within a dungeon, but this often creates a rigidness in team composition. The game is also generous in its health, since it replenishes to the party after every battle. Magic can revive characters through a simple healing spell, but constant knockouts reduce the character's maximum health until they rest in town.
The system makes the combat more accessible while introducing spikes in difficulty that may be frustrating to players, especially as they pop up against enemies whose toughness they did not know to expect.
The character development will hearken to the SaGa series, with random stat and skill improvements following battles, eschewing traditional leveling based on experience. Sure, its randomness may give some sense of inequality in the progression of the dungeon, but it is ensured that every battle has the chance to offer meaningful progression.
However, for much of its length, it's a game based on a repetitive play loop that can give you a somewhat tedious feeling on long stints with it. The dungeons aren't that unique, and the enemy variety doesn't really have you adjusting strategy too much, allowing for relatively passive play of the game.
Visually, the HD remaster brings the game up to date but without altering the heart of the game. The art style gets so much more respect at this new resolution, especially on Switch OLED—so it's not like it wasn't clear how the base game was developed on decidedly lower-powered hardware.
The HD Remaster of Legend of Legacy is keeping true to the original game for the most part, where not many things got polished or enhanced. Some flaws that have been overlooked in the game are even quite evident—for example, very poor enemy variety, a topic of many criticisms. This is one of the better dungeon crawlers that truly do present something new with its unique features, like the elemental system and chance character development. It unfolds simple yet charming gameplay for fans of this genre. However, it becomes clear quickly that the game could use further refinement, enough to have some of those rough edges filed off to bring it down from great to just good but not outstanding in its class.
