[Zeta Dragoon]

Recommended OST





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[Zeta Dragoon]

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Space Date 366

A Federation officer finds himself transported to a mystical planet. While searching for a way home, an encounter with a young girl draws him into a quest to save her people, just as an ancient prophecy foretold. Choose your path and witness an awakened destiny...​

The highly acclaimed second instalment in the STAR OCEAN series, returns as STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R.

Brought to life with a unique 2.5D aesthetic, which fuses 2D pixel characters and 3D environments, this remake includes everything that made the original release so great while adding new elements too!
Experience new battle mechanics, full Japanese and English voice overs, original and re-arranged music, fast-travel and so much more! Discover the definitive version of a classic but modernized JRPG that's perfect for newcomers and long-time fans alike.​

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

General Infomation

Title: Star Ocean: The Second Story R
Genre: JRPG
Release Date: November 2, 2023
Developer: Square Enix & GemDrops Inc
Publisher: Square Enix
Game Director and Development Producer: Yuichiro Kitao
Producer: Kei Komaki
Composer: Motoi Sakuraba
Character Illustrations: Yukihiro Kajimoto
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4|5

Notes
*Warning for PC users that the game has Denuvo anti-tamper.*
**Nintendo Switch Cartridge does require a download for other languages and bugfixs.**​

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Trailers

Note - Word of caution that these trailers do have major spoilers.

STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R - Announce Trailer


STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R – Anime Opening Movie


Star Ocean The Second Story R - Gameplay Trailer | PS5 & PS4 Games


Star Ocean The Second Story R - Soundtrack Sampler Trailer


STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R - Launch Trailer
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[Zeta Dragoon]

Editions​

Standard Physical Editions of STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R are available to pre-order now for the Nintendo Switch, PS5 & PS4 consoles, as well as the Standard Digital Edition for PS5 & PS4 consoles, and PC via STEAM. Pre-orders for the Standard Digital Edition for Nintendo Switch will be available at a later date. Players who pre-order the physical or digital editions will receive the following digital content as a pre-order bonus:

• Pangalactic Federation Longsword
• Forest Knuckles
• Sunrise Ring
• Set of recovery items (Mixed Berries x20 + Resurrection Potion x20)

STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R COLLECTOR'S EDITION is available as a special, limited quantity set made for both newcomers and fans of the cult classic.

SET CONTENTS*:
- STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R Standard Edition game
- Collector's Edition goods box
STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK COLLECTOR'S EDITION
STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R ART BOOK
STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R Mini Acrylic Stand Collection Box

*This set is a SQUARE ENIX STORE exclusive.

STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R - PS4 & PS5

TWO WORLDS, ONE FATEFUL ENCOUNTER.

store.playstation.com

STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R for Nintendo Switch - Nintendo Official Site

Buy STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R and shop other great Nintendo products online at the official My Nintendo Store.

www.nintendo.com

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Characters

Star Ocean The Second Story R - Claude C. Kenny Trailer


VOICE ACTORS
YUJI UEDA (JP)
DAISUKE NAKAJIMA (JP)
SPIKE SPENCER (EN)

"I want to protect you. And I think that's the reason I've been put here."​

Claude C. Kenny, second lieutenant in the Pangalactic Federation is one of two protagonists you can choose from in StarOcean The Second Story R. The Demo is available to play now and you can discover deep gameplay features! The new "Break" system, Combo Link, and Assault Action to create your own original battle style!

During the game, your party will split up at certain points and temporarily go their own ways, letting your protagonist have individual story events with them. These Private Actions can affect how the other characters see you, and some may even lead to major changes in the overall plot.

Make your own all-powerful weapons and armor! Discover Super Specialties, play minigames, become a fishing master in waterfronts, and much more!​

Star Ocean The Second Story R - Rena Lanford Trailer


VOICE ACTORS
AYA HISAKAWA (JP)
NANA MIZUKI (JP)
CLAUDIA LENZ (EN)

"I want to know what I really am."​

Born with unique healing powers, Rena Lanford is one of the two protagonists that you can choose from in StarOcean The Second Story R. The Demo is available to play now and you can discover deep gameplay features! The new "Break" system, Combo Link, and Assault Action to create your own original battle style!

During the game, your party will split up at certain points and temporarily go their own ways, letting your protagonist have individual story events with them. These Private Actions can affect how the other characters see you, and some may even lead to major changes in the overall plot.

Make your own all-powerful weapons and armor! Discover Super Specialties, play minigames, become a fishing master in waterfronts, and much more!​

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

- Fantasy and Science Fiction collide in a unique visual style
From dangerous dungeons to bustling towns, the world of STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R is depicted in a stunning 2.5D style that combines beautiful 3D graphics with nostalgic 2D pixel characters.

Experience a story with dual protagonists
Start your journey with either Claude or Rena. Depending on your choice, the perspectives and the allies you can recruit will change.
Get to know party members via the unique Private Actions system, grow relationships and unlock various endings.
New character illustrations have also been created by long-term series artist Yukihiro Kajimoto.

Thrilling, visually explosive battles!
Enjoy fast-paced combat and use new mechanics to strategically defeat foes.
"Break" by continuously dealing damage and order your allies to follow-up with an Assault Action to deal massive damage.

Pair powerful gear with a plethora of skills
Customize party progression with a large selection of skills, including Cooking, Art, Metalcraft, and many more. Build up to Specialty levels and master the enhanced Item Creation system to craft ultimate equipment with different effects.

Japanese and English voiceover
All event scenes are now fully voiced using the same voice cast from the original game. In addition, the dialogue from STAR OCEAN SECOND EVOLUTION (2008) is also included and can be selected.

An iconic soundtrack rearranged by Motoi Sakuraba
All tracks have been re-composed, including full-band performance and strings sound. Exploration and movie scenes themes also have new recordings that take them to even greater heights.

3 difficulty modes
Pick EARTH for a relaxing journey, GALAXY for a satisfying challenge or UNIVERSE… if you're brave enough to really put your skills to the test.​

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

New Game Plus Mechanic​

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

1998 vs 2023 Screenshot Comparison
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Royal Throne Room - 1998

Royal Throne Room - 2023

Claude and Rena exploring village - 1998

Claude and Rena exploring village - 2023

Village Overview Shot - 1998

Village Overview Shot - 2023

Pangalactic Federation Starship - 1998

Pangalactic Federation Starship - 2023

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Screenshots​

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[Zeta Dragoon]

System Requirements for PC​

• MINIMUM:
  

  • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system​
  • OS: Windows® 10 / 11 64-bit​
  • Processor: AMD A8-7600 / Intel® Core™ i3-3210​
  • Memory: 8 GB RAM​
  • Graphics: AMD Radeon™ RX 460 / NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 750 Ti​
  • DirectX: Version 11​
  • Storage: 20 GB available space​
  • Additional Notes: Expected framerate: 30FPS with 1280x720 resolution and default graphics options​
• RECOMMENDED:
  

  • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system​
  • OS: Windows® 10 / 11 64-bit​
  • Processor: AMD Ryzen™ 3 1200 / Intel® Core™ i5-3330​
  • Memory: 8 GB RAM​
  • Graphics: AMD Radeon™ RX 470 / NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1650​
  • DirectX: Version 11​
  • Storage: 20 GB available space​
  • Additional Notes: Expected framerate: 60FPS with 1920x1080 resolution and default graphics options​

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Square Enix Press and Playstation Blog

"SQUARE ENIX ANNOUNCES STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R " - Square Enix North America Press Hub

press.na.square-enix.com

Star Ocean The Second Story R Hands-on report: A classic RPG reborn

An epic RPG about a tale of love and courage is reinvented with the latest graphics and brand-new combat mechanics.

blog.playstation.com

How Star Ocean: The Second Story R modernizes a classic PlayStation adventure 25 years later

Square Enix explains the development process behind the upcoming RPG.

blog.playstation.com

The Composer of STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R: Motoi Sakuraba Interview
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[Zeta Dragoon]

Gaming Media and News

Star Ocean: The Second Story Remake Announced for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Steam - IGN

A remake of Star Ocean: The Second Story, aptly titled Star Ocean: The Second Story R, will launch on Nintendo Switch on November 2.

www.ign.com

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Reviews

Star Ocean: The Second Story R Reviews

Star Ocean: The Second Story R is rated 'Mighty' after being reviewed by 26 critics, with an overall average score of 86. It's ranked in the top 5% of games and recommended by 96% of critics.

opencritic.com

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[Mal]

Sooooo, switch or ps5? I'm still debating

 

[Mal]

Switch 720p 30 fps + longer load times
PS5 4K/60fps

PS5 it is

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Switch 720p 30 fps + longer load times
PS5 4K/60fps

PS5 it is

Switch I guess if you want the portability and a physical cartridge vs a physical disc. Otherwise PS5 and PC pop in and load times are better then the Switch in every way. I do want to know how Star Ocean 2 R will perform on the Switch Successor, and if the Switch will be reverse compatible with it. I've seen people say the game is fine on the Switch, but it's not going to be on par with PS5 and later PCs.

 

[Mal]

Switch I guess if you want the portability and a physical cartridge vs a physical disc. Otherwise PS5 and PC pop in and load times are better then the Switch in every way. I do want to know how Star Ocean 2 R will perform on the Switch Successor, and if the Switch will be reverse compatible with it. I've seen people say the game is fine on the Switch, but it's not going to be on par with PS5 and later PCs.

Never use the portability for the switch, it's docked 100% of the time for me. The kids use it as a handheld but it's not their type of games. I guess I'll get it on PS5, also have a pretty good PC but my old stubborn self prefer console when it's available on them besides online games

 

[Franky Family]

Nice work @Zeta Dragoon about where would you rank this in your top rpgs along all that you've played? I might pick this up later down the line

 

[JORMBO]

I am looking forward to starting this tomorrw. SO2 is one of my favorite PS1 games.

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Nice work @Zeta Dragoon about where would you rank this in your top rpgs along all that you've played? I might pick this up later down the line

Only played the 3 hour demo for this remake. I was into RTS, not RPGs when the original came out in 1998. I've heard for a long time how good Star Ocean 2 is, and how much people wanted a Remaster or Remake. Finally happening.

The demo was very promising, so much so I went ahead and pre-ordered.

 

[bork]

Fuck yea im all over this

 

[Torrent of Pork]

This is going to be weird playing, as I know the original like the back of my hand.

 

[Mal]

This is going to be weird playing, as I know the original like the back of my hand.

Just sit on it until it's numb, totally different experience

 

[Zefah]

This was one of my favorite PS1 RPGs. Definitely going to pick it up at some point, but just need to find the time...

 

[Torrent of Pork]

Oh my God, the objective markers on the mini-map are worth the price of admission alone. JRPGs of the time sometimes had a policy of, "Go fuck yourself, and figure it out," when it came to finding the right area or person to move things along.

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Oh my God, the objective markers on the mini-map are worth the price of admission alone. JRPGs of the time sometimes had a policy of, "Go fuck yourself, and figure it out," when it came to finding the right area or person to move things along.

Xenoblade Chronicles took me years to finish, and I did it only when Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition was released. Among the many, many changes to that game were objective highlights for the around 480 sidequests on the map. From what I've seen Star Ocean The Second Story R is definitely up there with so much sheer improvment it pretty much makes prior versions obsolete.

 

[Torrent of Pork]

They absolutely nailed the music box arrangement of Rena's Theme.

 

[Torrent of Pork]

The absolutely broken method of getting the Marvel Sword in the first few hours of the game still works.

 

[bork]

Grabbed my copy about to jump in.

The English dub of original always made me laugh. The way main guy says "The enemy." Burned into my brain.

 

[JORMBO]

Liking it a lot! I really love what they did with the graphics and art. Music is top notch too.

 

[bork]

Liking it a lot! I really love what they did with the graphics and art. Music is top notch too.

Oooo im excited about to sit down. I want to go to 7/11 and get a slurpee and some candy. Feel like when I played way back when.

*Sheds tear*

 

[Mal]

Trying to finish spiderman 2 this weekend so I can start this up.

How's everyone enjoying it?

 

[Torrent of Pork]

This is the best remake I've ever played, period. Everything great about the original has been either faithfully recreated or enhanced, and every niggling pain in the ass common to JRPGs of the era have been fixed.

I'm a fucking simp for both Zelda and Bethesda RPGs, and I loved both offerings this year; that being said this is my GOTY. Christ I feel like I'm 15 again.

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

This is the best remake I've ever played, period. Everything great about the original has been either faithfully recreated or enhanced, and every niggling pain in the ass common to JRPGs of the era have been fixed.

I'm a fucking simp for both Zelda and Bethesda RPGs, and I loved both offerings this year; that being said this is my GOTY. Christ I feel like I'm 15 again.

So far Star Ocean The Second Story R is one of the best JRPGs I've ever played and is more then living up to its reputation. The last JRPG with these sheer production values I think was Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition and Dragon Quest XI: Echos of an Illusive Age, with Persona 5 Royal around there, but that game has a very different focus build on its school calendar system and a modern fantasy setting then a conventional fantasy JRPG. Octopath Traveler 1 and 2 are up there, but arguably dont have a major focus on their central stories that can't quite match up with the best of the 90s, 2000s greats.

Realizing the sheer party customization reminds me a little of Final Fantasy XIIs Gambit system and Xenoblade Chronicles own combat system. Octopath Traveler 1 and 2 also may have taken a lot of influence from Star Ocean 2 and other JRPGs in how many helpful abilities your party can get to break the games difficulty curve over their knees.

Its incredible to see how an older JRPG like Star Ocean 2 has been transformed with all of the learning experiences over the decades both from other JRPGs and later Star Oceans. Have a feeling Star Ocean 3 Remake will be greenlit, and that Star Ocean 7 will not only be greenlit and try to build on what 6 accomplished with a shoestring budget and what 2 has done. I could see Square-Enix giving 7 a far bigger budget, if not at Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest levels. 7 being 6 on steroids, trimming the big empty world areas a bit but putting, better regions, towns, dungeons with all of the Qol and sensible improvements found in 2 Remake could be something special. As is, Star Ocean 6 is pretty decent, though you can see the budget dwindling as you go on. Star Ocean Second Story R is going to be a new standard for how to do a remake.

I think this game will be the deciding factor for any eventual Final Fantasy VI, Dragon Quest V and Chrono Trigger Remakes. They might not quite use HD-2D and instead go more with Second Stories Hybrid? method? that works beautifully.

 

[Mal]

I'm starting this as I finished SpiderMan 2. Never played it but from what I saw, I want pickpocket asap and level determination to 10 for everyone? I don't want to spoil it but I don't want to miss on anything

 

[Zefah]

This is the best remake I've ever played, period. Everything great about the original has been either faithfully recreated or enhanced, and every niggling pain in the ass common to JRPGs of the era have been fixed.

I'm a fucking simp for both Zelda and Bethesda RPGs, and I loved both offerings this year; that being said this is my GOTY. Christ I feel like I'm 15 again.

Seriously. I've only put two hours into the demo, but it's crazy how good this is. It captures the feel of playing the original while obviously being updated in a lot of important ways. Definitely a lot of love poured into this update.

 

[Mal]

Game is gorgeous, feels like i'm a teenager all over again

 

[Mal]

Dude wtf is this game, it's harder than dark souls or I just suck at it. Used all my healing items and mp items to get to the save point in the first dungeon.

I am getting pummeled between ennemies and can't parry for fuck or the other chars just waste all their mana and stand still afterwards

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Dude wtf is this game, it's harder than dark souls or I just suck at it. Used all my healing items and mp items to get to the save point in the first dungeon.

I am getting pummeled between ennemies and can't parry for fuck or the other chars just waste all their mana and stand still afterwards

Counter is only one part of the combat mechanics. There are tons and tons of different ways and approaches to upgrade combat abilities, abilities to grant partywide skills, one example being able to avoid or find more enemies.

Ability to upgrade gear, fine tune gear, and even increase your ability to increase your ability.

You can change party formationa and party prioritizations as you get further along. The game offers many methods to go about this.