There are many instances in life in which charm and charisma can make the most mundane people, movies, songs and games stand out, saving them from being simply (and justifiably so) labeled as mediocre. A great example will be talked about today, as I’ve had the opportunity of playing remastered versions of the seminal Lunar games. For many, the announcement of this collection was a first opportunity to finally play these cult hits, the typical games like one of your friends in middle school might have owned for the PS1 back in the day. You know the one, that typical guy who was way into JRPGs and anime more than a decade before those became mainstream in the West.

Lovely characters, lovely dialogue sections, lovely stories to unfold.

I can’t say I had ever played Lunar before tackling the Lunar Remastered Collection. I knew about them, vividly remember tons of unsold copies of Lunar: Silver Star Story for the PS1 in gaming stores back in the day, and have always somehow associated the franchise with its blue-haired damsel/deuteragonist Luna, but that was basically it. Originally developed as Sega CD JRPGs, they were already as niche as niche could be back when they were first released. Those games would eventually be remade for Saturn and PS1, and then remakes of the remakes would be launched for PSP; this is where most people in the West would finally play these games and experience their charming plots and characters.

Lunar Remastered Collection features revamped versions of the 90s remakes. That means the collection contains remastered versions of Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete (originally released in 1996), and Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete (originally released in 1998), with a handful of quality of life enhancements here and there to make those JRPGs a bit more palatable for modern audiences. What is retained is a ton of anime cutscenes, which have always been the most lauded aspect about the Lunar games. Whilst still in a 4:3 aspect ratio, those animated cutscenes have been tinkered to look as pristine as they possibly can. There is a lot of anime footage in both games, and without a doubt, they are still one of the best aspects about them.

An auto-battle mode is not worth bragging.

The other highlight in both games, for they are somewhat similar, is their overall charm. In short, both Lunar and Lunar 2 feature adorable plot, characters, and storytelling progressions. They are traditional tales of people from a small town venturing on a big quest to save the world, but are enhanced by some excellent voice acting, localized dialogue, and relatable characters. Falling away from traditional anime tropes, you see, for example, the love between the two protagonists in the original Lunar blossom as the game goes on, and you root for them. In a way, despite a cliché here and there, these titles feature stories that are almost like cozy, comfort food. You smile when reading lines of dialogue, and rejoice whenever there’s an animated cutscene.

Now, when it comes to actually playing those games… let’s just say it’s a good thing they’re cozy and adorable. I’m not saying they are bad, but they are, well… very dated. Both Lunar and Lunar 2 are painfully simplistic and basic JRPGs with very little in terms of bringing anything new to the table. Their combat is somewhat boring and shallow as a puddle. There’s very little customization and teambuilding opportunities. Each character will always play the same, with no way to explore new gameplay possibilities. To top it off, grinding. Lots and lots of grinding. It’s not like Lunar and Lunar 2 are difficult RPGs, but being old-school JRPGs, the difficulty curve is all over the place, with the games artificially inflating their runtimes by basically forcing you to grind.

You’re here for the outstanding anime cutscenes. They are worth the grindy gameplay sections.

I’m definitely not a fan of this approach, and have never been in basically any old-school JRPG. That’s just meant to inflate a game’s duration, giving them a false perception of being bigger. There is an auto-battle mode, but I don’t think that’s something you’re meant to brag about. If a JRPG features an auto-battler, it’s basically telling you that they themselves know that you can’t be bothered to play these combat sections ad nauseum, just to finally be able to proceed with the damn plot in the first place.

But I’m not going to end this review on a sour note. I really wanted to know more of the plot in both games and spend more time with these adorable characters. The visuals are magnificent (32-bit sprites do age like a fine wine, after all), and the voice acting, as previously mentioned, is outstanding. There’s a reason why people cherish the Lunar games so much, I totally understand that, and you can see from every angle… except the gameplay itself.

The visuals are outstanding, even if both games retain the same art styles and graphics from their mid-90s counterparts.

Both Lunar and Lunar 2 are utterly adorable JRPGs with lovable characters and great plots you can’t help but want to experience as much as possible. To have them available in an accessible and polished remastered package is more than just a lot of bang for you buck, but also a great way to preserve two cult hits from the 90s, finally making them easily accessible to a wider audience. It’s a good thing they are charming as hell, as their gameplay is grindy and dated. If you can put up with the clichés and limitations of old-school JRPGs, then Lunar Remastered Collection is a very easy recommendation.

Lunar Remastered Collection is available now on PS4, Xbox One, PC and Switch

Reviewed on Intel i7-12700H, 16GB RAM, RTX 3060 6GB and Asus ROG Ally.

A copy of Lunar Remastered Collection was provided by the publisher.