Vanillaware action-RPG before Odin Sphere, with an elegant melee combat system. Sumptuous illustrations and magnificent animation for Saturn. Significant Japanese barrier but gameplay speaks for itself. A precious Saturn exclusive.
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Category
Action RPG1 player12+
Description
Action RPG by George Kamitani in which Princess Gradriel reclaims her country's usurped throne. Published by Atlus, released in Japan in 1997. Real-time combat with dodges, parries and weapon combinations, 2D side-scrolling exploration, exceptionally beautiful hand-drawn 2D visuals and narrative in the style of an illustrated novel. A Saturn exclusive and precursor to the Dragon's Crown series.
Princess Crown review
MAX
Art direction
★★★★★
"Iconic"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
MAX
Story
★★★★★
"Masterful"
Hand-painted frescoes of rare finesse, slender heroes and fairytale settings: George Kamitani's game already heralds the entire Vanillaware style. The richness of the colours and the grace of the 2D animation dazzle. This pictorial splendour, refined and polished, stands as an unforgettable visual precursor.
Signed by the Basiscape studio, the score unfurls a majestic orchestra with fairy-tale accents, blending lyricism and tragic grandeur. Each act of this fantastical theatre pulses with a sumptuous theme, between tenderness and fury. This symphonic richness, refined and spellbinding, wonderfully matches the game's painterly splendour.
A princess compelled to defend her kingdom, a young heroine moves through a fairy tale drawn like an animated picture book. The tale combines lightness, the marvellous and emotion with a unique storybook charm. A forerunner of the Vanillaware style, this enchanting fable still charms with its grace.
Complete: box, manual and disc/cart very clean. Lightly handled.
Q1 damagedQ6 completeQ10 new
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Collector interest
Japan exclusive Saturn edition of Princess Crown, distributed by Atlus in December 1997 with the 1M tag, a 2D action RPG directed by George Kamitani before he founded Vanillaware, regarded as the aesthetic and systemic matrix of Odin Sphere, Muramasa and Dragon's Crown. Atlus Japan run was short, jewel case with intact obi, and Princess Crown's position as proto Vanillaware makes for Kamitani and Atlus enthusiasts a complete with obi copy a central archive object that is gradually rarer in clean shape.
Is Princess Crown still worth playing in 2026?
An action RPG by Atlus exclusive to Japan, Princess Crown offers a 2D adventure where Princess Gradriel sets out to free her kingdom with a real time combat system on a side scrolling plane. The sublime watercolour art direction by George Kamitani, acrobatic handling and fantasy scenario make it an absolutely overlooked gem of the Saturn catalogue and an Odin Sphere precursor. For anyone fond of Vanillaware or seeking an absolutely cult Atlus classic, an absolutely essential recommendation today still truly here indeed.
