Most sources I've seen say that Hiroshi Fujioka did the music for Growlanser II. It isn't listed on Iwadare's website either so my guess is that Wikipedia is in error (alert the media!)Vyse of Arcadia wrote:
The Source of All Knowledge says he also did Growlanser II.
It's a good series, so I'd say it's worth checking out depending on your patience for older/import games. The main thing that sets it apart from most other SRPG series is the "generals and mercenaries" mechanic, where each of your characters can hire soldiers to fight alongside them in a battle. As a result, the battles tend to have quite an epic scope. A (somewhat) brief summary of the series:Vyse of Arcadia wrote:I don't mean to derail the thread, but is the Langrisser series worth looking into? I've heard it's the inspiration for Battle for Wesnoth, and BfW is awesome.
The original Langrisser was for the Genesis and was the only game in the series to get an official English-language release (under the title Warsong) It was one of the earliest SRPGs, so it's very primitive by today's standards, though it was well-received at the time.
Langrisser II for the Genesis somewhat refines the systems from the first game and is one of the more challenging entries to the series. It's somewhat notable for having villains with morally ambiguous motives in an era when that was rare, but the story is otherwise unremarkable. There is a translation patch available. The game was remade for the SNES under the title Der Langrisser. This version further refines the gameplay systems as well as adding multiple story branches. A translation patch is available for this version as well.
Langrisser III was released for the Saturn. I've haven't yet had the chance to play it, but it's usually thought of as the black sheep of the series. Career Soft tried experimenting with a real time-ish battle system which wasn't well received. It adds a system where your dialog choices affect how the other characters feel about the main character and there are multiple endings based on this. This system has also appeared in later Langrisser games as well as the Growlanser series. The story is a prequel to the other games in the series.
Langrisser IV was released for the Saturn and is one of my favorite games of all time. The gameplay was further refined and the story is quite good for an RPG. Also, Princess Angelina is one of my all-time favorite RPG characters. Like Der Langrisser the game features multiple story branches. Most of the script has been translated and posted online and there's also a FAQ with a detailed story summary.
Langrisser V for Saturn was the final "real" Langrisser game. It's fun but, IMO, a step down from the fourth one. The entire script has been translated and posted on GameFAQs.
There's also a Dreamcast game called Langrisser Millennium but it's not really part of the series. It didn't have the same development team and the gameplay and story have nothing to do with the series.
The music in the series is pretty good. It has a different feel from, say, the Lunar music, but is still recognizably Iwadare's. More detailed info on the series can be found at this site
Back on topic, I've always found Iwadare's interviews to be good reads. Here's some others:
http://www.squareenixmusic.com/composer ... view.shtml - Includes some discussion of Iwadare's relationship with Working Designs.
http://www.rpgfan.com/features/iwadare- ... index.html
http://lunar-net.com/interviews/iwadare.php - Now where have I heard of this website before?
