Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete

Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete is a reworked version of the classic JRPG that arrived on PlayStation with significantly improved graphics, fully voiced dialogue, and expanded content compared to its earlier releases on older platforms, making it the definitive version of the game for many players. The story follows young adventurer Alex, who sets out with his friends to fulfill his dream of becoming the legendary Dragonmaster, gradually uncovering a far deeper and more emotional tale of sacrifice and love than he expected at the start of his journey. The game is a textbook example of a classic Japanese RPG with a more linear narrative, but with all the more elaborate and endearing characters, whose relationships form the backbone of the entire story.

The battle system is built on turn-based fights that take place directly on the map, where character positioning affects the outcome of combat and the range of individual attacks — a fairly innovative solution when the original launched on the Sega CD, and one that still feels clear and intuitive today. The PlayStation version also added animated cutscenes from Production I.G, among the visually most impressive moments in the whole game, lifting key story beats to a cinematic level. Noriyuki Iwadare's music captures the story's wide range of emotions, from lighthearted moments on the road to dramatic final passages, and remains among the genre's most cited scores to this day.

At release, Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete was praised above all for its strong story, endearing characters, and quality localization, among the best that JRPGs offered Western audiences at the time. It's still remembered today as an emotional classic that showed storytelling and characters could matter just as much as the battle system and the scope of the world, and it's often recommended even to players just starting out with classic JRPGs.

Why play it: With its strong story, endearing characters, and quality localization, it's a great fit even for players just starting out with classic JRPGs.