Star Ocean: The Second Story R Review (Inspector Gesicht)
Here's the gist.
This is a 25-year-old RPG rebuilt from the ground up for 2023. It evokes the memories of a Playstation Classic, but wisely tightens up the experience with an astronomical level of polish. It takes a 30 hour game, trims 10 hours of backtracking and grinding, then pack in a good 10 hours of sidequests to help flesh out the experience. First I'll point out how this game deals with the common bugbears of the RPG genre.
Don't like backtracking? You can fast-travel to any location, right down to the vendor.
Hate random encounters? Enemy mobs are now visible on the map.
Hate grinding? There's an auto-battle option akin to Earthbound where your party members dispatch oncoming foes for full EXP. You can easily hit the cap without fighting much at all.
Too many missables? All timed events are marked on the fast-travel menu. Provided you know about the mutually-exclusive party-members, you won't miss anything.
You don't need to know anything about the Star Ocean at large to enjoy this game. Hell, this is the only installment fans can recommend without a "but." Star Ocean 2 is a lightweight RPG where the plot isn't terribly important, as the most attention is given to the slice-of-life scenes scattered about. You've got a world-map to explore, party members to recruit, equipment to wear, and a galaxy to save.
Where Star Ocean 2 stands out is the extensive skill-system that let's you do whatever you want. Want to create the hero's best sword only halfway through the game? You can do that. Want to ride a giant bunny rabbit across the map? You can do that. Coming off the last Zelda game, the crafting system is a breath of fresh air, as it doesn't hinge on farming rare items ad nauseum. You can do crazy stuff like write your own skill books for free and give all party members an early boost. You can transmute cheap iron into the philosopher's stone. You can endlessly replicate medals that give party members a free level up. Again and again you will find a cool new way to break the balance of the game. There's a new sidequest system meant to encourage players to try out the crafting system, and also a fun fishing minigame thrown in, because why not?
Star Ocean: The Second Story R is the gold standard for remakes, and for RPGs in general. It brings back the original experience, albeit with updated visuals, music, and polish. But also caters to a modern audience. It's instantly approachable and highly replayable. The plot may be guff, but the nuts and bolts underneath are up to snuff.