Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean

For fans of Japanese RPGs on the Saturn, English was a rare commodity, and Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean was one of the few to grant it to them. This classically styled JRPG offers what lovers of the genre craved in the nineties: colorful 2D worlds, turn-based battles and a story about a hero thrown into a fateful adventure.

The game builds on the genre's proven pillars. You explore a fantasy world, gradually grow stronger, gather companions and take part in turn-based battles where the deliberate use of abilities and spells matters. Visually it bets on detailed hand-drawn 2D sprite graphics that are characteristic of the Saturn era and that still don't age as quickly as the competition's early 3D attempts.

Significantly, the game received an English localization and released on the Western market too, which made it one of the accessible JRPG experiences for players outside Japan on a console that otherwise suffered a shortage of translated titles in this genre. The English translation also earned a reputation for its idiosyncratic and at times lighthearted tone, which gave the game its own character.

For collectors and genre fans, Albert Odyssey thus remains a valuable piece of the Saturn's library — a reminder of a time when every translated JRPG on this platform was a small event. It's a title for those who enjoy a traditional turn-based adventure without needless frills.

Why play: For a classic 2D turn-based JRPG that was among the few English-localized representatives of the genre on the Saturn and will delight lovers of traditional adventures.