Classic Sega RPG Series Teased to Return on Modern Platforms

A classic Sega RPG series has been teased to return on modern platforms in the future. Throughout its history, Sega has released a number of iconic role-playing games across various platforms. While franchises like Phantasy Star and Valkyria Chronicles are among the most popular, Sega has even pivoted some of its series, such as Like a Dragon (or Yakuza), to lean more heavily into RPG systems and mechanics in recent years. And while there are plentty of other Sega RPGs that remain trapped on older consoles, it sounds like this might not remain the case much longer for one series.

In a recent interview with Famitsu (via Gematsu), longtime game creator Oji Hiroi expressed a desire to bring the oldest entries in the Sakura Wars series to current-gen platforms. Sakura Wars, which was released exclusively in Japan on Sega Saturn in 1996, went on to become a hugely popular tactical RPG. So much so, in fact, that the series received four sequels, culminating in 2005’s Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love. While many fans have been clamoring for the franchise to come back with a sixth mainline entry, which Hiroi says he’s interested in, the creator says he also wants to find a way to make the oldest games easier to access.

“Of course, we would like to do it as well,” Nishino said of bringing the older Sakura Wars games to modern hardware. “However, there are various circumstances involved, so it’s not something we can easily move forward with. Still, we want to find a way, and we’re working hard each day.”

While this is thrilling to hear, Hiroi’s comments make it sound as though nothing imminent is going to happen with Sakura Wars. Still, for Hiroi to clearly be pushing behind the scenes to make this a possibility with Sega is exciting to hear. As it is, Sakura Wars 1 through 5 all remain stranded on older platforms, with the first four games in the series still having only ever been released in Japan.

Back in 2019, Sega tried to reboot the Sakura Wars series with the simply titled Sakura Wars. This represented the first new entry in the franchise to come about in nearly 15 years, and while there was quite a bit of anticipation surrounding it, the game ended up receiving rather mixed reviews. As a result, Sega hasn’t done anything new with the property in the time since, which would make remasters or ports of the older entries the most logical next step. Assuming that these ports ended up being a hit with fans, it could also make it even easier for Hiroi’s long-awaited Sakura Wars 6 to finally happen.

How do you feel about Sega potentially bringing these Sakura Wars games to current consoles and PC? And do you think that this is something that will actually happen in the future? Be sure to let me know your own thoughts down in the comments section.

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