Which Version of Star Ocean: Second Story Should You Play? - All Versions Reviewed & Compared

[@AustinSV]

ADDENDUM: Patch 1.10 for Star Ocean: Second Story R (3.27.24) added new content and features. Square's overview trailer of the update and patch notes w/ additional info: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m3fac3xtnqZ_nqM Chaos Difficulty was added The Ten Wise Men are now post-game raid bosses Upon defeating them, you’ll earn new equipment, weapon customization material that's used with super weapons, and that boss as an Assault Action. -The boss fights' debuffs, equipment buffs, and assault action abilities are unique and some are pretty wild Minor characters have been given dialogue portraits. Alongside that, a Character Graphics Collection was added that lets you see every character's portrait and expressions When starting NG+, you’ll now be given an option to reset character levels, leveled arts, spells, and skills (excluding ones from items & events) The Ending Collection now lets you actually re-play the character endings The title screen (subtly) changes upon beating the game Added more Oracle hints "Adjusted Ally symbologist AI" alongside misc. bug fixes

[@bilditup1]

Saw this enormous update today, months after the game’s release, and was pretty surprised. Thanks for detailing the changes (per usual!)

[@PlazDreamweaver]

I'm glad I clicked on this video. I already played through almost all of 2nd story R before dropping it for some time for many reasons. I had no clue this update existed until now. So, I plan on finishing the last bit of the boss rush at the end of the main story before enjoying more of the game with this update. Thanks for adding this addendum.

[@Qrec12]

Probably the best remake of an old classic jrpg I ever played. This is how it should be done.

[@StewNWT]

Imagine if Tales of Symphonia had been done in this style.

[@andrieputra]

its not remake its remastered

[@bonnerjung3326]

@@andrieputrano its completely remade. Not remastered….😂 And its fucking awesome! 🥰

[@FredMaverik]

@@andrieputra No it is a remake. Lol people always confuse the two. The PSP version is a remaster. The new one is a remake. Learn the difference.

[@rubenalvarez6830]

I can’t wait to see what they do with Cronotrigger!!

[@DBSouza1993]

I hope someday they remake Chrono Trigger like this!

[@davidlegrice4207]

Idk Chrono trigger is pretty much perfect as it is. If they remake I'd say it would be better to do a full 3d remake like with trials of mana. But to take great care to ensure this doesn't mess up the art style in any way.

[@Shishizurui]

@@davidlegrice4207 i found out of the existance of chrono trigger all because as a kid i stepped on a nail. and my dad rented this instead of the mario rpg i requested.I DO NOT REGRET stepping on that nail. i also feel CT is a perfect game.

[@rossmerchant8435]

​@@davidlegrice4207 Dragon Quest XI really showed me that the Toriyama art style can work in modern 3d graphics. They'd do really well to model the look of a 3d Chrono Trigger remake on that

[@dreadiejaquan9240]

Xenogears please!

[@Kingslay3r]

@@dreadiejaquan9240 agreed, a xenogears remake would be MASSIVE

[@calvinmatthews1527]

It truly is mind blowing how well Gemdrops did this remake. They went ALL OUT, and it shows! Seriously SE, hold on to these people! Square, you have been killing with remakes/remasters in the last few years. Unlike certain other Japanese developers.

[@otterdonnelly9959]

Point em out! 🗣️

[@Polari918]

😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

[@HybridAngelZero]

I was so looking forward to this video! I had no idea they changed so much under the hood for the PSP version, but honestly I still can't get over how above and beyond Gemdrops went with Second Story R.

[@diegocasillas404]

Just got Second Story R for the new OLED Steam Deck and it looks amazing. Perfect portable game.

[@NameKannNichtAngezeitWerden]

I just got the Switch version for Christmas 😂 Merry Christmas everyone!

[@newbrowny]

this is seriously the benchmark for these old school rpg remakes to me now

[@RicochetForce]

Star Ocean: Second Story R is a fucking masterwork of a remake. Holy shit. I knew it was only a matter of time before Austin got around to it. No joke, oldheads were going through the game and found the team was clearly VERY aware of incredibly esoteric, minor things and either enhanced them or provided really thoughtful QoL improvements. This was clearly a labor of love.

[@SethJV]

Which version should you play? Second Story R, there's no debate there. It's such an AMAZING remake!

[@joeyxl3456]

Nice

[@robertpegg1585]

Agreed. But its way too easy

[@BeansEnjoyer911]

Second Story R is amazing and any JRPG fan should pick it up. It really is a great remake. The PS1 version is still nearly perfect to me (might be nostalgia) but the remake is objectively better

[@retro_marmota]

@@BeansEnjoyer911 but the ps1 doesn't have voice acting

[@NAzo.]

I appreciate the video man. The remake of Star Ocean 2R when I first saw it was jaw dropping and now that it's been out I can't believe such a remake exists. Truly the best remake of a classic of RPG I have ever seen. I hope Square can allow Gem to redo part 1 like this but I doubt it. I hope Gem will do other classics like this in the future if Square Enix allows them to or let them handle any of the classic in their catalog since Gem put this much passion into this remake I'm sure the can do a much better job then Square Enix themselves especially those that has been released on Steam. We still waiting for FF pixel remaster to include the patches the console version received, Chrono Trigger still has issues as well as Chrono Cross etc etc.... Holy smokes this remake is such a gorgeous game I can't stop salivating.

[@otterdonnelly9959]

Square needs to keep Gemdrops and Historia under their wing. This and LiveALive remakes were so unexpected and a step beyond what I thought Square would even allow.

[@NAzo.]

@@otterdonnelly9959I dunno who Historia was till last night when I got Live A Live on steam. I only got to the title screen and saw their splash screen. Looking forward to the game if you giving it props.

[@shinoff-tw4eq]

Star ocean 2 remake was the best version. It absolutely killed it. I played and streamed both playthroughts and specifically set out to platinum it. I'm usually not into caring for trophies.

[@wertywerrtyson5529]

I’m enjoying it on PS5 and the QOL improvements as nice. But I must say I kind of prefer the old PS1 pre rendered backgrounds.

[@fabolousjada5070]

Me too

[@DragoonMyuutsu]

Monumental remake in R that we got compared to the First Departure R port; having played all 3 versions, the original game and PSP for me took >130 hours to finish everything in a single playthrough, while in R, it took me

[@UltimaKeyMaster]

I found it hilarious that First Departure R was more of a bog standard porting job of the PSP game, which was fine enough. But it looks hysterically quaint compared to Second Story R being as gigantic of a remake project as it is. SSR is a game truly worthy of the title of "remake."

[@endoskel9262]

You pretty much just convinced me to order the game, so thanks for that. Happy holidays btw

[@astrea555]

Now that's a remake! I know some people dislike the new 3D backgrounds but honestly they did it the best possible way, short of making a remake that looks like SO6.

[@hemangchauhan2864]

Such an impressive comparison. Great video. And Season Greetings/Happy Holidays, Austin!

[@diogow3]

Amazing remake and amazing video to accompany it. This remake set a new bar that should be followed from now on.

[@Itsumi456]

I'm playing through second story R as my first proper star ocean game and as a fan of tales of phantasia it's really feeling like that spiritual successor kinda vibe and while it's not the deepest story wise, it's such a fun time and all its systems work insanely well together.

[@wandinugraha4310]

the game QoL is really friendly for adult with limited time to play the game and also the game is really beautiful hope every jrpg company asked Gemdrop to remake their classic game (breath of fire, xenogears, chrono trigger etc) because Gemdrop really nail it

[@middle_pickup]

The character art looks so good. Looking forward to this one.

[@Enharmony1625]

Really hoping for a "Which Version of Vagrant Story Should You Play?" video! Well, I guess Square Enix has to actually DO a remaster/remake of Vagrant Story first..! 😅🙏

[@nmnate]

I bought a switch for 2nd Story R. Man was it worth it. Put 60 hours in over the holiday... every bit as good as I remember and all the added stuff is quite tasteful. Item remaking is a grind (first play through) but leveling is really quick and not very painful. Playing through again as i had forgotten how easy it was to miss a few PAs. Oh well, gotta get those endings 😊

[@chisaten]

Thanks for this video! I loved the PSP version so much that after I finished my first playthrough, I bought the official guide off eBay and played it multiple times after that. This time, I'll wait until I get a gaming PC to buy it again.

[@lLarceny]

Crazy, my cousin hates it lol. After watching this, I think he's just drunk off nostalgia. This is awesome!

[@Wil_Dsense]

Drunk Off Nostalgia, Hahaha! 😂 Well He must be because Second Story R is a masterpiece, and I’ve not even played it that much and I can say that with confidence.

[@Sonnance]

Thanks for putting this together! Will be nice to have an all-in-one version differences video to point to. And yeah, absolutely blown away by the remake. I am in the group that thinks the conveniences went a little far for my taste (I likes how much you had to figure out on your own in the older versions) but that wasn’t nearly enough to sour my fun with SSR. It’s clear the team at Gemdrops really got what the game was about, top to bottom.

[@Bistona]

Merry Christmas, thanks for the vid!

[@NL_the_Godfather]

Thanks for the detailed video. I didn’t know about the playable welch character on the psp version. As I only played ps1 and am waiting for a sale on this new one! Since I have so many games to play.

[@MadLustEnvy]

This may be the most ideal way to make a remake of a 2D game to date. I hope they go back and do First Departure with these enhancements though I have a feeling they won't as it is a very short game, and return on investment is probably really low.

[@SethJV]

No chance they'll do SO1 again, it'd be a waste of money. However, that Blue Sphere something SO...!

[@UltimaKeyMaster]

It's a little late considering we literally already have a First Departure R and it's simply First Departure again with some tweaks, optional new portraits and the option of the SNES voice actors. Which, if I do have to give both of these modern Star Ocean releases major props for, it's inviting back the original original voice actors. I feel like this isn't too normal a thing for JP voices anyway since lots of anime and games tend to hold on to their OG casts far far FAR more often than Western dubs or even Western IP's, but the fact even with an example of a different JP voice crew at some point they did it anyway is commendable.

[@TheExFatal]

idk, I'm not a fan of this whole HD2D aesthetics, there's so much awful bloom and inconsistent artstyle between sprites and 3D graphics, I'd rather either a full 3D remake or true high quality 2D

[@UltimaKeyMaster]

@@TheExFatal To be fair, it's not quite the Octopath HD-2D where the sprites are made entirely with it in mind. These are effectively the original sprites tweaked a bit.

[@kevinfromsales9445]

Which version of Dragon Quest series please!

[@NukeA6]

I second this. The first 5 especially. 11 has been done already.

[@sisotoy9254]

celine character portrait alone make it worth to play the R version

[@CaptnYestrday]

I thought some of your final fantasy work was the best I've seen. You've outdone yourself Edit: spelling

[@Chummy8]

With Emulation, his videos are essential. The question is always: Are the changes made in the remake worth the money or would the original experience be fine? In this case, it appears that the new remake is the definitive version to play. That isn't always the case.

[@Kiobao]

I just hope enough people notice this game and buy it to encourage them to do remakes to this quality. This is a really good remake and I have been loving it.

[@TripMX]

Thanks a lot for making this well-documented video! You’ve gone above and beyond and detailed things that most other reviewers haven’t too! Nobody even talks about the old spell fusions anymore...ahh, good ole Acid Rain + Thunderstorm spell fusion for that early-game sweet 9999 damage~. As one who played the original PS1 JP release religiously back in the day, I found the remake to be absolutely mind-blowing! The Gemdrops team MUST have been hardcore fans of the original SO2 and decided to pour their entire heart into this remake because it really really shows! The latest update which added more extras was even more icing on an already perfectly baked cake! ❤ I really hope Star Ocean: The Second Story R can eventually sell millions till the end of time~!

[@sinfurihaart]

Thank you for making this video! As someone who has played the original PS1 version and enjoyed the remake version. I was very curious as to what they changed and what remained the same. I am so happy that SO2 has returned to modern day consoles and PC!! Here is hoping more older JRPGs are treated the same way when being revived.

[@retro_marmota]

Ps1 doesn't have voice acting, right? Do you miss it in the ps1 version?

[@Kyubi2345]

Jesus KHRIST I HAVE TO PICK UP SECOND STORY R!!! SOOOOOO MANY QUALITY OF LIFE CHANGES OMG!!!!! THIS IS FANTASTIC!!!

[@CrimRui]

Best done remake to any game ever. They just added more, which is a way to do remakes in general.

[@McKnighty]

Geez man, I can’t imagine how long it takes to be this extensive on version differences. Thanks tho.

[@mbekmbek7214]

The only thing I don't like from this otherwise perfect remake is it's using PSP translation, especially with how you can use JP voice now, you'll notice the original PSX naming for characters (except the censored Wise Men), skills, items, etc is more accurate.

[@chrisglare6354]

Short answer: Play Second Story R.

[@NL_the_Godfather]

Especially after the new content update

[@flamehiro]

Remake > original > remaster

[@Gothenburg1]

its me but while the remake feels gigantic, Im so in love with the pre redenred atmosphere and visual of original. the reverbe in score feels nice too

[@TomFawkes]

99 ENDINGS?!

[@Daigon95]

More like a core set of endings and everything else are just variations of those core sets say like if someone lived or u dating someone else, etc.

[@TheLunarLegend]

I'm a little bummed they got rid of spell fusion. It didn't do much and was hard to pull off, but it was a pretty cool idea and I wish they'd reworked it instead of scrapping it

[@Suprapika]

I recently tried to play the remake of Star Ocean 1 on Switch and I really couldn't be bothered to play more than a few hours of it. This game looks totally crazy, they really ramped up everything for this one. I wish the 2D Tales games could get something like this.

[@at0micl0bster]

like hearts r? shame its vita locked

[@Suprapika]

Hearts R is weird because it's barely even the same game as the DS version. It feels like more of a reimagining than a remake.

[@SethJV]

SO1 is basically the same game as SO2, even though this SO2's remake looks better. If you didn't like SO1 (I'm judging you for this), you will not like SO2.

[@Suprapika]

@SethJV well that's good to know at least, thanks

[@superizillian957]

@@SethJV I’ve played both, they play quite differently

[@T.O.Wallee]

Rockstar and Konami please take note

[@CaptBeefy]

I still can't believe when I was a teenager, I bought an original mint condition copy of the PSX version at a pawn shop back in 2000-2001.

[@R3dMatador]

Thanks for the video! Made want to buy the game, now I just need to make room in my backlog 😅

[@skyMcWeeds]

Just when I thought the PSP version was pretty good, here comes Second Story R oh yeahhhhhhh!!

[@ChaoticHoly]

I can only hope that Chrono Trigger gets a similar remake.

[@hyperturbofox17]

Chrono Trigger is already perfect the way it's is.

[@fabolousjada5070]

@@hyperturbofox17naaa if they do it like this but with a diff color pallet and itll have better graphics cause of akira it will look amazing

[@Scurrydog]

Awesome game, awesome remake. I kind of wish there was a classic toggle but kept the QoL changes for future playthrough ^^; Also kudos to covering the steam deck support.

[@manamaster6]

Just out of curiosity played the Switch version on my phone by emulation and it is amazing how beautiful it is.

[@daee936]

Hey but I know this is random but I found your channel again with the starbomb song and I just wanted to see what you where doing now and I’m happy what with I see

[@stoneifisaunt]

The Only thing I miss is the Tear into pieces was super bummed when it wasn't in the recent remake

[@garrettord3304]

I've been loving R. As much as I love the original game, I often felt like I had to consult a guide during my playthrough to avoid missing stuff. It's still possible to miss some major things (namely Opera and Ernest) but the private action markers are very handy and QOL updates on menus and killer move progression are welcome changes. On the flip side, 2d backgrounds looked better than the updated 3d in some cases (but not all). The biggest issue I have is that the hit animations can cover up the action so much that it's impossible to see what's actually happening. That usually doesn't matter, but it would be nice if there were a setting to scale down some of those effects. Perfect dodge is also a fun mechanic, but I would have preferred to be able to cancel animations with dodge. As it is, you have to commit to waiting for the enemy attack if you want to use the ability, because you won't be able to attempt a perfect dodge if you are in an attack or ability animation. On the newly added highest difficulty, enemies will often kill party members in 1-2 hits even in the early game - perfect dodge would be a great answer to this, but you have to choose between going for the dodge or spamming attacks, since attacking locks you out of dodging.

[@marcusclark1339]

so many changes, they went crazy still like some of the older design though, even random encounter, this is probably the best work around without removing it completely which is good but always remember the original is still a playable game

[@sion7651]

this remake is a dream come true!!! i cant believe this is actually real!! even more mindblowing than the FF VII remake!!

[@_alleycat_]

dude. respect. you covered everything!

[@nate567987]

this is so good it makes me wish the first game was like this hell the 3rd as well

[@neonfatum]

SO2R is the best remake of anything I've ever seen. It's faithful and yet different in all the right ways. The QOL features and tutorials make all the complex mechanics much easier to figure out, so it kinda loses out on the experimental, enigmatic feel of SO2 a bit, but I think that's OK in the interest of getting people to actually interact with these systems more in what is probably the definitive remake of the game. SO2 is a really interesting game. It doesn't really matter if you play the original, PSP or R versions, as every version of it is great. It's interesting too how different they are, while still remaining the same at the core. Always still authentic SO2. That's really unique.

[@Straigo]

Austin, do you have any plans to do a Which Version should you play for Lunar Silver Star Story?

[@kagemusha7029]

Star Ocean 2nd Story R is definitely the best of all. Also, you can play on chaos mode now. However, it did make easy for us to play even on universe mode till now they provide more challenge Chaos Mode.

[@ChaosDom69]

i loved the R the most i had fun with the ps1 back in the day i got the psp version never finished it got half way then when R came out i put 100 hour on my steam deck lol

[@brawlman2000064]

7:00 Me when I finish a game or show and I really loved it.

[@IAMNOTRANA]

I never played this game but remake looks like real work is put into it. I wish Final Fantasy 6 was given this much love.

[@TheColdOne]

Ugh. I only recently got started on XBC3 (85+ hours) after waiting so long and I have too many games to play, but now I want to start on Second Story R (I never beat the original or PSP release).

[@Sammy_McFly_14]

Pls do a comparison of the Dragon Quest games

[@jeremymay56]

Don't know if you take suggestions in the comments, but imma do it either way lol. Would love to a see a dragon quest series!

[@GeoDudeB]

Playing the psp version now. Loving the story.

[@flashhomepaviabranch5196]

I like the voice over of the original one.

[@at0micl0bster]

the Challenge Missions are the Records of Eminence from ff11

[@Finnishmanni]

The psp version soundtrack sounds like they were made with the same software where sonic soundtrack was made on. Ps1 version sounds like a good orchestra songs

[@nintendo1889x]

It just lacked the reverb the PS1 version had

[@abeldiaz3877]

I'd say they went behind anything I was expecting. I have replayed the original several times, the PSP one other several times, and yet I'm replaying 2R several times.

[@LeonisBraefer]

I would like to state that there is still a pre-requisite for writing books as you need to at least have level 1 in the skill to be able to make the book for it.

[@RazorbackDevil]

I want this and dragon quest 3 but I’m torn between the switch version and ps5 version. Portability vs presentation…

[@JordiumZ]

I'll buy it next year physically

[@leejianian8717]

Him: this game is heavy on mechanics 5 year old me: using claude go spam the skill where he jumps up and hit the enemy on their head

[@zenothkun]

Definitely the remake and PC version is the best, no contest.

[@paperluigi6132]

Would Trace Memory/Another Code be interesting enough for this channel?

[@masteraep305]

Ah TOSE, the mercenary of game dev

[@LucasDarkGiygas]

thanks for the video

[@KainDrake]

I wish they did this for the first game. That one seemed more of a port.

[@normalguycap]

I only just tried the demo that was available. It looks interesting but I hate the bad writing so far at the start (Krosse castle to the cave is where I stopped). But man I was unaware at how much improvement was made by Gemdrop. That's astounding.

[@Rob_Cahill]

I wish they would have given Celine more private actions. That's one thing that pissed me off in the PS1 version. I watched the anime and I know she had still a bit of time with Claude in it, but the game even set up events that never happened that should have. Like when she gives you a necklace and then says you can return the favor later maybe. Although it seems like raising relationship points maybe easier than the 90's version.

[@deatho0ne587]

Have the original, psp something and Switch version. Saying that though I do not like the way certain character's pixel art looks in the newer version, example Claude's hair seems very white.

[@cj12597]

I'm on the fence, I've been playing my PS1 a lot lately like legend of mana and tomba... I love the 2D animations and old artwork and music. Is it worth to give up all the old art, old voices, old music, and play the Remake on Switch? I've never played Star ocean but heard it's similar to legend of mana...

[@amyyamasaki8529]

Don’t know if you want to update, but there was a PS4/PS5 version has been updated giving lots of more options. If you already have it sorry this is the first I came across

[@vigo2669]

After playing R I don't think I could ever go back to the previous versions.

[@fabolousjada5070]

Hmm i love cutscenes hows the cutscenes ?

[@PrincessNine]

The digital rereleases of the psp version are online in Japanese and are Japanese account only

[@allenofblacksteel9169]

my god. if I didn't watch this video I didn't know that animation cutscene is no more in Remake.

[@JEANS__]

i don’t like the battle effects of the remake, it’s so hard to see what the hell is going on in the late game when the entire screen is covered sometimes. but that’s my only nitpick otherwise it’s perfect.

[@StarryKnightPinkle]

I like the psp character portraits. Can I swap them in the menu so that they appear in the game and it’s cutscenes?

[@BabusGameRoom]

6:57 oh dear...the PSP voices...ahaha

[@destinyshand2049]

Still love ps1 english version's pear into peaches

[@rossmerchant8435]

This isnt a biggie for me, since I prefer the new character portraits in R, but why are you only able to view the older ones in the status screen?

[@shenmuelandlord]

christmas ocean!!!

[@mbii7667]

Damn, no anime cutscenes in the remake is a bummer

[@Saboteur_91]

Wish they used the original PS1 English voice acting in second story R. The PSP English voice acting just sounds weird to me. Maybe it’s cause I grew up playing the PS1 version 🤷🏻‍♂️