There is a slight blurriness to the Nintendo Switch debut version of last year’s Live A Live remake. The image quality just isn’t the greatest, but it’s hardly a dealbreaker. At the time, my thought was that while the game’s gorgeous utilization of Square Enix’s HD-2D engine would flourish on stronger hardware, it was hardly enough of an issue to tell folks to wait on potential ports.
Oops, right? Here we are, less than a year later, and you can now check out this bold and unexpected remake of a previously Japan-only JRPG on not just Switch, but PC and PlayStation consoles as well. What we have been given with these ports is the best-looking and smoothest-running version(s).
I booted up Live A Live on my Switch on one of my two TVs, and my PS5 on the other, and the difference was bigger than I would have expected. I’m not talking in technical terms here – I’m no Digital Foundry! – but from a purely amateur perspective, I can safely say Live A Live on PlayStation 5 is crisp enough by comparison that you’ll likely be impressed, too.
![](https://novacrystallis.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Live-A-Live-Wild-West-Saloon-Standoff.jpg)
But then I got to thinking, well, Live A Live may look best beyond Nintendo’s bounds, but is that enough to recommend portable-loving gamers skip the Switch? It’s true, this is a terrific game for on-the-go sessions; it’s simple enough at its core that you can dive right back into one of its several story eras for a few moments while on breaks and commutes. (The combat, while neat, is hardly the deepest in the genre.)
That’s where the Steam Deck comes in, right? I don’t personally own one, but from what I’ve researched, the PC version of Live A Live is basically ‘PS5 with more options’, and the game is verified for Steam Deck compatibility. All of a sudden, I’m thinking it’s downright inarguable that this nifty role-playing game is better than ever in 2023.
So, that’s cool. But how is the game itself? If you’re only just now looking into Live A Live, know that it’s an HD-2D reimagining of one of Square’s stranger titles. The original came out way back in 1994, and it stars a group of heroes from separate points in our world’s timeline – from Prehistoric Times, to Ancient China, to the Wild West and Edo-period Japan, on to Present Day, the Near Future, and lastly the Distant Future. (There’s an eighth, in the Middle Ages, but you unlock it later on.)
![](https://novacrystallis.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Live-A-Live-Twilight-of-Edo-Japan-Rooftop-Chase.jpg)
After you’ve played each hero’s episode, including the Middle Ages unlock, a final chapter binds it all together. It’s a bit like Octopath Traveler – the inevitable modern comparison – but… cheekier? Quirkier? There’s a lot of silliness in here, though there are some prime bits of well-earned drama as well. The tone ranges drastically between eras, so you’re bound to find at least a couple you love; I can’t stand the writing in the Prehistoric chapter, for example, but I adore Edo and the Near Future.
Battles play out in grid-based combat; every time you move someone a space, the enemy units’ own turn timers charge up to the point that eventually they’ll attack. It’s nothing outstanding, but then, it’s a pumped-up rendition of something novel and unique from 29 years ago. For a (far) more detailed overview of Live A Live, swing by our original review.
I still pinch myself that Live A Live got a remake. The old-school Square fan in me wonders what else we might see in HD-2D in the years to come. For now, I’m happy to have replayed this strange and captivating classic with shinier graphics and silky-smooth performance.
Version Tested: PlayStation 5
Disclaimer: Review code provided by the publisher Square Enix.
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