Another classic Nintendo-exclusive RPG finally comes to PC next month
Live A Live is a bit like Octopath Traveller if you didn't know how to say Octopath Traveller's name out loud.
We've had a pretty good run of Nintendo platform exclusives making their way over to PC recently. We got Triangle Strategy late last year, the Etrian Odyssey games are due out in June, and now the formerly Switch-exclusive remake of beloved RPG Live A Live will hit Steam on April 27.
The original Live A Live came out for the Super Famicom in 1994, and let you play as a bunch of different protagonists with their own stories. It's pretty Octopath-esque, which only makes sense given that Octopath was something of a spiritual successor to Live A Live. It was also pretty dang weird, with environments themed after everything from the Middle Ages to prehistory to the far-flung future.
Combat was turn-based, and pitted you against era-appropriate enemies like cavemen, cowboys, or, uh, bikers. I'm pretty sure a dragon was in there too. All very Chrono Trigger, but sadly unavailable outside Japan.
That is, until it got a full-fledged remake last year. Replacing the original's SNES-era graphics with the sumptuous 2.5D you'll recognise from the Octopath games, it was generally well received by fans and critics, even if it was moored on a strange, hybrid platform the kids are calling a "Nintendo Switch".
Well, no more. Square Enix has made a rare good decision and decided to break the game free of its console shackles. It's not actually live on Steam just yet, for reasons I can't fathom, but it should be up in the very near future for preorders. There will also be a demo for you to try out when it finally pops up, which will let you play through the opening sections of three of the game's stories.
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One of Josh's first memories is of playing Quake 2 on the family computer when he was much too young to be doing that, and he's been irreparably game-brained ever since. His writing has been featured in Vice, Fanbyte, and the Financial Times. He'll play pretty much anything, and has written far too much on everything from visual novels to Assassin's Creed. His most profound loves are for CRPGs, immersive sims, and any game whose ambition outstrips its budget. He thinks you're all far too mean about Deus Ex: Invisible War.