Sigma Star Saga

E3 Preview 2005

Namco had one of the best booths at E3, thoroughly covering every platform with a playable game. Game Boy Advance got several kids titles, but it’s Star Sigma Saga – an RPG with multiple types of classic gameplay, a classic soundtrack and a traditional, 16-bit story – that piqued the interest of attendees.

Gameplay is slow but varied at this stage of development. The RPG aspect is an isometric hack-‘n’-slash. Walk around, find enemies, and tell them to say goodbye to this world.

The other part of the game is the side-scrolling space shooter. People frequently watched the video monitors just to see the shooter levels. They’re reminiscent of R-Type and that crazy, too-difficult-for-words shooter that Square released in the late 90s. 

Sigma Star Saga’s gameplay isn’t the only aspect that has dual elements. The story has players controlling a double agent. His name is unknown, but his adversary is known to everyone as the Krill. The Krill is one letter from the word kill, which might be the point.

As the world fights to survive, the Allied Earth Federation discovers that the Krill are planning to destroy (or take over) six planets. It’s assumed that these planets must be very important, otherwise the Krill wouldn’t be specifically targeting them.

Fearful of the future, you are sent in to find out why they’re targeting those six planets. More importantly, you’re asked to defeat the Krill from the inside!

More than 50 Gun Data items are being created for the game. With its involved story and lengthy worlds to explore, Namco says that it will take the average player over 20 hours to finish the game. For those of us who want more, we’ll have the chance to go back and unlock additional story endings. A rarity for RPGs, especially the good ones, multiple endings are always welcome.

It’s been a while since a Game Boy Advance RPG has sparked my interest. Sigma Star Saga looks to be the game to bring me back to my no-sleep, no-shower ways. All a gamer really needs is a console, a handheld system, or a mobile playing device and he or she is all set. E3’s wonderful sights and smells are proof of that.