Sanctuary Saga

It’s hard to innovate when it comes to Turn-Based RPGs. The concept is fairly arbitrary; you have a designated chance to attack and one to defend, and if you skip this rule, you aren’t playing a turn-based RPG. That’s why there’s little room to create new experiences inside this kind of game. Nonetheless, some games have succeeded in this labor, and one of them is Sanctuary Saga.

The Classical RPG

Sanctuary Saga gives the player the chance to explore the Untamed Wilds, a world with four biomes and different enemies in each one. In the game, you don’t only control a character, but four at the same time! It’s great and a flop at the same time because you have to manage a whole caravan (which gets to be a challenge) but, at the same time, you can’t get an active role in the plot of the game; it just develops in the background and only happens in between battles, like if it doesn’t have relevance. This is a mayor problem because the biggest pillar that maintains an RPG is its story; if it flops, the game flops, no matter how fun it is.

And about the small bits of story that we can see: they’re plain and cliché. For sure, Sanctuary Saga doesn’t shine in developing a story. Also, the game is packed with dialogues, so you’ll have intense reading sessions while playing Sanctuary Saga.

A Shining Pixel Art

Sanctuary Saga is a beautiful game; you can spend several hours seeing the art of all the bosses and mini-bosses and won’t get tired. The same goes with the ambiance, which can turn a bit monotonous over time but the first impression is top-tier.

The design is marvelous and the music is wonderful and goes well with the game. It resembles beautiful retro games like Final Fantasy V or Chrono Trigger.

Make a Row, Everyone Will Get a Turn

The combat system in Sanctuary Saga works in turns of rows; this means every character will have a chance to attack, but there will be moments when one of the enemies can attack before one of the characters. Also, their abilities will change the rows depending on how much it costs to attack or defend. Lastly, the enemies can also change the order of the row, meaning that you’ll have to be very attentive to the current row to know how and what to do with every character.

Aside from the row turns, your characters also have an ARG bar; this bar measures how angry or annoyed can a character get with another character of your party, which means they won’t focus on the battle. To avoid this, you’ll have to maintain a great relationship between all the characters. Otherwise, battling will be a struggle.

Pros And Cons

Pros

• It’s a beautiful game
• It has some cool music
• The battle system is entertaining

Cons

• The story is a bit boring
• The game develops slowly
• It can get repetitive

Sanctuary Saga is a pixelated adventure that will provide players with a dangerous journey through four different biomes. Play as four squad members at once and execute killer combinations that leave no chance for the enemy to strike back. Use the advantages and disadvantages of the landscape to deceive the enemy and strike a surprise blow.

Game Pros:

• Travel the vast world and assemble your dream team
• Relationships and team positions can affect damage
• Unforgettable biomes, each with its own flora and fauna