Memorable Melodies: Tender Glow from I am Setsuna

Song: Tender Glow

Game: I am Setsuna

Composer: Tomoki Miyoshi

I have an undying love for Super Nintendo RPGs. Chrono Trigger is my absolute favorite game of all time. The characters and the adventure that they went on will stay with me forever. For some reason modern JRPGs just don't do it for me like they used to. I can't explain it, but something is missing.

Square-Enix put together a new studio called Tokyo RPG factory to try and make Super Nintendo era RPGs on modern consoles. Their first project 'I am Setsuna' released in the United States this past Tuesday as a digital only title. I am around ten hours into the game and am enjoying it a whole bunch. It has the same ATB battle system as Chrono Trigger, so it was an automatic buy for me.

However, more than the direct nods to Chrono Trigger it actually does feel like a SNES RPG. The story is simple, but the characters have a lot of heart. They may not all be as fleshed out as I'd like, but I can see what the writers were going for. On top of that it's not a sprawling game and is supposed to clock in at around 20 hours of play time. 

I read an interview with the director of the game and remember him saying that the overall theme of the game is sadness. This definitely comes across, because everything in the game is fairly sullen. To add to that effect the entire game takes place over a series of snowy islands. So while the snow is falling slowly on the land the thing that puts the somber feel over the top is the piano only soundtrack. At first I thought it would be grating, but now I actually kind of like it.

There's something about walking slowly through a town in a light snowfall while slow piano music plays i n the background. It's weird, because it doesn't make me sad, but instead makes me very reflective. As I play through the game I can't help but think back on games like Chrono Trigger and it makes my heart feel all warm and fuzzy. Tokyo RPG Factory hit the SNES feels for me, and Tender Glow is one of the songs from the game that actively makes me feel right at home.