The first Sakura Taisen, a brilliant fusion of visual novel and strategy. Taisho atmosphere works, characters charm and tactical battles grip. A founding classic.
Your verdict
Category
RPG1 player12+
Description
Ogami Ichiro and the Hanagumi battle mechanical demons in Taisho Tokyo in this Red Company tactical RPG for Dreamcast. Published by Sega, released in Japan in September 1999. Tactical RPG with mecha-theatrical combat, relationships with female characters, romantic and dramatic Taisho universe. Japanese edition.
Sakura Taisen review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
4/5
Story
★★★★★
"Captivating"
The saga's founding entry, Sakura Taisen bears Kosuke Fujishima's graphic signature, whose character design elevates a romantic Taisho-era Tokyo. Polished theater sets, animated cutscenes and elegant costumes make a warm, retro art direction, halfway between woodblock print and opera. Brought to Dreamcast, this founding adventure regains its full visual radiance. A timeless charm.
Composed by Kohei Tanaka, Sakura Taisen's founding score lays the foundations of the saga's musical identity. Flamboyant orchestrations, heroic marches and rousing songs carried by the actresses' voices accompany mecha battles and daily scenes. The troupe's unforgettable anthem is born here, galvanizing the adventure. Generous, theatrical music, the matrix of the revue spirit.
The saga's founding entry, Sakura Taisen follows Ichiro Ogami, a young officer tasked with leading a theater troupe that conceals a demon-fighting combat unit in Taisho-era Tokyo. Blending romantic visual novel, timed choices and tactical battles, the story invents a fresh formula, weaving camaraderie, romance and heroism with infectious warmth. Founding writing, the matrix of an entire genre.
A pillar of the Sega catalogue, Sakura Taisen weds Japanese style dating sim and turn based tactics in a steampunk Japan peopled by steam driven mechas. The bonds forged with the heroines directly sway the battles, creating a narrative and strategic loop of great elegance. The retro futuristic charm and the writing quality have aged remarkably well. For a fan of the licence, a lover of narrative strategy RPG or someone curious about a cult classic, the title stays essential on the console.
